Hotel Deals: Valentine's Day Specials at Mexico and Puerto Rico Hotels

History with heart: Hotel El Convento is offering a Valentine's Day special.

BY MARK CHESNUT

February is just around the corner, so it's only natural that some couples are starting to think about romantic Caribbean vacations and memorable Mexico vacations. Thankfully, a variety of Puerto Rico hotels and Mexico hotels have stepped in with some interesting proposals of their own to create a heartfelt getaway. Here are just a few to get those hearts beating in new ways.

Puerto Rico Hotels

• La Concha, a Renaissance Resort in San Juan's chic Condado district, is offering a "Discover Romance" package from February 9 to February 15, with prices starting at $289 per night, that includes:
     —Ocean-view accommodations
     —Bottle of champagne
     —Godiva chocolates

     —Breakfast for two

     —Late checkout 

• Isla Verde Beach Resort, in San Juan's popular beachfront Isla Verde district, is offering a "Romance Under the Stars" package, with prices starting at $410 per night. Included in the deal:

     —Ocean-view accommodations

     —Dinner for two with personal chef

     —Breakfast for two, served in-room

     —A "special amenity" (you'll have to ask what that means)

     —30-minute couple's massage

• Hotel El Convento, the lovely historic hotel set in a former convent in Old San Juan, has cooked up a "Valentine's Day Romantic" package, available February 14-16, with prices starting at $450 for two nights. Included are:

     —One dinner for two, including one glass of champagne at Patio del Nispero restaurant

     —Upgrade to deluxe accommodations

     —Flower arrangement in guest room

     —Chocolate truffles

     —Rose petal turndown

     —Daily wine and cheese reception from 6 to 7pm at La Veranda Terrace

     —El Convento signature tote bag

The look of love: The Hilton Los Cabos offers romance packages.

Mexico Hotels

• The St. Regis Mexico City is offering two special deals. The St. Valentine Package, with prices starting at $489 and availability from February 11 through February 19, includes the following:

     —Valentine's decorations

     —Private in-room three-course dinner

     —Bottle of champagne

The St. Regis Mexico City's "Valentine Spa" package, meanwhile, has prices starting at $629 with a deluxe room. It includes all of the same amenities, with the addition of a couple's 60-minute massage at the Remede Spa and an aromatic bath in your room (with three different scents available to choose). 

• Travelers who can't quite make it in time for Valentine's Day but who would still like a decent romantic deal might consider the Oasis Sens, the recently renovated, adults-oriented all-inclusive hotel where couples can toast the end of the day at the stylish new Sunset Bar, enjoy a multi-course dinner in one of the a-la-carte restaurants and then retire to a comfy guest room complete with mood lighting — all for a price starting at about $120 per person, per night, all inclusive. Oh, and they can also use a nifty little two-person Smart Car, free of charge.

• The Hilton Los Cabos Beach and Golf Resort is another good choice for couples who might not make it in time for Valentine's Day. Their "Bed & Breakfast" package is available through December 31 and is priced at $239 per night. Included is breakfast for two, all weekend long.

And don't forget: If you're headed to Brazil soon, Dia dos Namorados, Brazil's version of Valentine's Day, is June 12. 

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HOTEL REVIEW: Grand Oasis Cancun Offers Entertainment by the Sea

The beach at the Grand Oasis Cancun resort.

BY MARK CHESNUT


I have to admit that before my recent visit as a guest at the Grand Oasis Cancun resort, I was a bit confused about what was the difference between the various Oasis Hotels & Resorts properties in Cancun. After all, isn’t one all-inclusive Cancun hotel the same as any other? 


The answer, of course, is no, and following some lengthy site inspections, I can say that I now understand what makes each Oasis property unique, and the types of traveler that each is best suited for. So before you click “reserve” on that travel site, you might want to check out my series of reviews of the four Oasis hotels in Cancun's main hotel zone. 

Mayan influence: The pyramid-shaped main building at the Grand Oasis Cancun resort.

THE GRAND OASIS CANCUN

THE STYLE: This is the type of architecture that you might picture when you think of Cancun hotels: Mayan-inspired angled structures, centered around a gigantic, pyramid-style main building with a central atrium overflowing with greenery. A large entertainment staff is often lurking in the main reception area, greeting new guests with song (one of my fellow travelers was greeted by a very friendly “vampire”). This lively atmosphere extends to parts of the large swimming pool areas as well; during my visit one section was used mostly by college-age students (enjoying a live DJ and chatty MC with a microphone), while another large pool area was quieter, with families and couples.  

Time for bed: My guest room at the Grand Oasis Cancun resort.

THE AMENITIES: Rooms are conservatively decorated but tidy and bright. The pool complex is beautifully landscaped, and the beachfront is quite attractive (the small gym has an especially good beach view). Included is access to a nine-hole golf course, tennis courts and 18 restaurants and bars (the a-la-carte restaurants had the best food during my visit). If you can fit it into your budget, I recommend upgrading to the Oasis Plus level, which includes VIP check-in and access to a VIP lounge that’s comfortable and relaxing, with great WiFi.  


The Grand Oasis Cancun is the lively, entertainment-oriented property in the Oasis family. Name-brand performers are often on the stage here (I saw a fun performance by Kool and the Gang during my visit). Not to be missed is the performance by the Birdmen, a Cirque du Soleil-style acrobatic dance show that takes place after dark in the atrium and is truly worth seeing (check out the video here). 


BEST FOR: The Grand Oasis Cancun is ideal for vacationers looking for lots of entertainment options. Budget-conscious travelers will find good deals, with lots of restaurant choices and activities included. Young adults (i.e., college kids) will find spirited fun with people their own age. 


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New Airport Terminal Opens in Liberia, Costa Rica

Now boarding: The new terminal at Daniel Oduber Airport in Liberia, Costa Rica.

Anyone planning a Costa Rica vacation to the country's most popular resort area will have a new facility to welcome them. 


The new terminal at Daniel Oduber International Airport in Liberia, Costa Rica began operations on January 12, 2012, according to an announcement by the Costa Rica Tourism Board, Costa Rica’s Ministry of Public Works, the General Directorate of Civil Aviation and the country’s vice president.  The terminal has the capacity to service 1,500 passengers per hour and features 28 check-in counters, art and souvenir shops, restaurants, car rental counters, a VIP lounge, currency exchange counters and a convenience store, among other offerings. Tourism officials are confident that the new terminal will not only improve travel conditions and services, both for tourists and airline carriers that have chosen to fly into Costa Rica, but will encourage airlines to continue investing in the country.

“The construction of this new terminal will certainly boost national tourism development in Costa Rica, increasing the frequency of flights and attracting new airlines to the country, ensuring the competitiveness of the destination and its sustainability over time,” said Costa Rica's minister of tourism Allan Flores.

The new, larger facilities are probably timed well, considering the increasing visitor numbers in this part of the nation. In November 2011, Daniel Oduber International Airport showed an increase of some 29 percent in arriving passengers over the same period last year. Several airlines, such as JetBlue and Frontier Airlines, have already invested in the terminal by offering new flight routes into Liberia. On November 17, 2011, JetBlue began offering four non-stop weekly flights from New York’s JFK Airport into Daniel Oduber, while Frontier Airlines began servicing Liberia on January 30, 2011 From Denver. 


Nonstop flights are available into Liberia from several North American cities, including New York, Chicago, Toronto, Atlanta, Houston, Montreal, Dallas, Denver, Miami and Charlotte. With the opening of the new terminal, the Costa Rica Tourism Board hopes to increase the number of airlines and flights traveling into the country.

From January to November 2011, Daniel Oduber International Airport recorded an estimated 15.4 percent increase compared with the same period last year. The airport is one of the major points of entry for visitors traveling into Costa Rica, serving as a gateway to Guanacaste and the surrounding areas of Monteverde, La Fortuna, Tortugero and the Central Pacific. Named after the national tree of Costa Rica, Guanacaste is one of the country’s most popular vacation and ecotourism destinations, with several biological reserves, national parks and wildlife refuges.


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Sweet Rides: 3 Cool Ways to Travel Around Cancun

Hot wheels: The Oasis Sens resort has a big fleet of little Smart Cars, which guests can use for free.

BY MARK CHESNUT


One of the pleasures of a Cancun vacation is the ease of getting around; the layout of the Zona Hotelera (Hotel Zone) is essentially one long boulevard, making it hard to get lost. And the public bus, which costs just 8.50 Mexican pesos (less than U.S.$1) is an efficient and safe way to move around. But if you're looking for a bit of personal liberty as you sightsee, consider these three unique transportation options — one of which was recently introduced by the popular chain Oasis Hotels & Resorts, and each of which offers a memorable way to see Mexico's top vacation destination. 


1. Go Small: Oasis Hotels & Resorts — which runs the the stylish, adults-oriented Oasis Sens, the family-focused Oasis Palm and Grand Oasis Palm and the big-scale Grand Oasis Cancun — recently introduced a big fleet of cute little Smart Cars, which guests can use for free. It's a great — and affordable — way to zip around the hotel zone or even make day trips (guests just need to have a driver's license and pay for insurance). This is clearly one of the best — and most interesting — transportation deals available at any Cancun hotel. 


2. Go Wild: For those looking to sit in the back seat and make a splash, check out Cancun Inclusive VIP, which has 12-person Cadillac Escalade and Chrysler 300 limousines, both of which come complete with mirrored ceiling, LCD TV and strobe lights. Or opt for one of the luxury classics at Platinum Car Rental — perhaps a Mercedes Benz SLS and S-500 or an attention-getting 1959 Rolls Royce Silver Wraith. 


3. Go Greener: Cancun Scooters Rental has a fleet of automatic, GPS-equipped scooters, with rental rates of  just $35 per day — providing an open-air option that allows those warm Caribbean breezes to caress your face as you tour the sunny coastline. 

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VIDEO: The Birdmen bring Soaring Talent to the Grand Oasis Cancun Resort

Vibrantly painted "birdmen" and women perform a Cirque du Soleil-style show at the Grand Oasis Cancun Resort. 

The Grand Oasis Cancun resort is one of the most easily recognizable Cancun hotels, thanks to its pyramid-inspired main building, centered around a dramatic atrium with overflowing greenery. At night, that atrium looks even more dramatic when the birdmen take to the air, and the show is so impressive that it sets video cameras (including mine) whirring for the entire performance. 


This very talented group of acrobatic dancer/performers, who are part of an aerial dance troupe called Humanicorp, performs stunning, Cirque du Soleil-style shows accompanied by music that might make you feel like you're in a movie, and it's free for hotel guests. This VIDEO shows highlights of their amazing show, as well as behind-the-scenes footage from their rehearsals.


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